Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-01-09

names when ! thought Of the story, In
America. Aren't you coming TO help u.s.
Miss Warburton j; u such fnn! "
II am sorry that ! cannot, dear. have
promised 10 20 TO the Burchetts', but am
sure you don't want me. Tom never lets
me-
"GoIng TO the Burchetts'fv said Tom, a
little ruefully. "John Mayne is going
there this afternoon"
Now, John Mayne was no less person
than the editor OF 7yburnio, and Tom
Warburton had the best reasons for wish
ing TO stand well by him; and his guilty
conscience smote him as he remembered
that the great man bad half limited, duringa
hurried meeting in the street, that hoped
TO see him at the Burchetts' on Sunday, and
that he bad something TO say TO him.
His sister had been told OF 1t, aud
had not forgotten; and was he not
at war with herr The remembrance
was for the moment bitter, but diu
not spoil bis afternoons enjoyment,
and when Miss Warburton went her way,
yowing that he should be "deiyered from
that irdelicate DelIlah," be returned to his
work, or play, Whichever 1t was, with zest.
But the seance, like all things that are
pleasant and human, came TO conclusion II
last, and then his practical habits had the
mastery once more, and he began 10 ques
ton himself about the results OF his Sun
days work, and consider whether they had
been such as TO outweigh the advantages OF
a Kte-d.ffte with the editor OF 1yburnid.
"Was Mayne therei" he asked his SIS
ter, rather family In the course OF an al
most silent dinner, an hour or two later.
"Ob, yes, and bewants 10 see you par
ticuarly. He will dine with as next Sun
day, and as came home i asked the Bur-
tons and Whartons to meet him, and Mrs.
Lincoln Of course"
Toms conscience smote him once
more-harder this time-as he recognized
the iorgiving spirit Of his sister, who had
covered his retreat In spite OF his hasty
words Ofthe night before, and peace reigned
again between them. AS for Miss War
burton, she was content, for she believed
that now the game was In her own hands.
Mrs. Lincoln, however, enjoyed the work
OF the succeeding weekdays less than she
had expected. Tom had vowed within
himself that the partnership must mean
business and not play, and that his
"quantity" must be got through
and his sisters amiable efforts TO
give the partners every opportunity
OF meeting kept him up to his
resolution. Meet they did, at odd hours
and seasons so as TO suit Toms engage
ments, and work they also did; but the
poor little widow began to feel az II she
were at school again, and actually grew
Jealous OF the actors and actresses in her
own love story, who seemed to have mo-
nopolized all the attention which Warbur-
ton had before been only too willing to give
to herself. Tom saw nothing OF what was
taking place under bis eyes, despite his own
immediate share in It; but he was con-
scious that Mrs. Lincoln was not nearly so
"smart" as he had supposed, and resented
her ways OF wasting time and talking out OF
season as well as in, and by the next Sun
day afternoon the relations between the
Joint authors had become so strained that
something like quarrel very nearly oc-
Cured. Mrs. Lincoln's checks were flush
ed and her eyes bright with anger when she
went down TO dinner; but that emotion so
well became her that Mr.. John Wayne, who
was something OF lady fancier. pro.
nounced her IN his own mind the prettiest
widow that he had met for some time, and
proceeded to do all that in him lay to win
mis- way into her good graces. This was at
the moment not difficult TO do, Tor the
would. be authOress was more than prepared
10 fall down and worship so great
dcmi.god as this successful editor; and rs
the latter soon succeeded in possessing him
self OF her confidence on the subject which
was uppermost in her mind, the wicked
thought occurred To this weak woman that
she might do without Tom WarburtOn
after all, and that the way to literary life
might be as smooth as the soft sentences OF
her new friend suggested. Before the eve
ming was over Mrs. Lincoln had accepted
an invitation to visit the Sauctum which so
many tolllng talc-tellers found severely in
accessible, and the deity who reigued
there departed with half-formed
conviction that he was smitten with
the charming widow and the Ger:
tainty that she was more than bali
in love with him, while poor Tom Warbur-
ton kept wondering why she "would not
play any more" now that playtime had
come, and even the recollection of very
practical ten-minutes' talk with the great
man before dinner could not console him
for his fair partners parting snub. Miss
WarburtOn. however, chuckled 10 herself
in secret, aud her chuckling did not grow
less cheerful when two days after she found
herself the bearer OF a somewhat curt re-
quest TO her brother that he would send
Mrs. Lincoln back her manuscript, as she
UhN NOW DO lltuC w ~ On WIN bh' oNOAl
"Her manuscript, indeed :" growled
Tom. with rising wrath. "Confound the
woman, what does she meany Ihaye wasted
a week IN licking her rubbish into shape,
and now nothing is to come OF it,"
However, he sent every scrap OF paper
connected with the ill-starred story, along
with q short but very civil note, begging
Mrs. Lincoln TO finish and publish the
novel without reference to him in any way.
This, however, was not what Mrs. Llncoln
wanted, and her answer was neither short
nor civil. She wished for her own story,
she said, and would not tOuch line OF the
wOlk that had been done jointly, and re-
turned half the manuscript, which only
served to bring honest Toms ire TO boiling
point, for TO him it seemed insanity that no
one should benefit by that weeks work.
And after this things took place over which
| would rather draw a veil, for two estlma'
bic young people lost their heads and their
tempers, as perhaps they might not have
done had not their hearts been lost
already, and behaved badly and rudely to
each other, while the fame was famed by
an amiable and gentle lady who had
never done a yindictive action or said
an unkindly word in her lie before.
The manuscript kept travelling between
the two houses till Miss Warburt0n's SER
wants had strict orders to receive neither
note nor parcel from Mrs. LincOln's; and
on Christmas day the widow cut the War
burtons in the sight OF the whole congrega-
CATION outside Iligbgate Parish church
and went home and wept; while Tom re-
tired TO his den a miserable and, he thought.
heartbrokcn man.
One Saturday morning lite in January
the widow wept once more-this time over
a letter from her lawyer; nut it was not OF
the laWver she was thinkiOg.
81 will see him aud have It ont" she
cried. ''Ile can't refuse me there. Aud
ii he dccs. be can't refuse letter."
She was very quick in her ways, and soon
her tears were dried and she was fairly
started IN hanson from the bottom OF the
bill, quietly clad and yelled, as became her
errand, en- route for the House OF Commons.
OF the inner working Of that ancient insli-
tuition she knew nothing at all, but she bad
a vague notion that WarDurton might be
found there, aud that IL she represented
herself as calling on bu sineSs he must see
her, or at least receive the papers which
she hid brought with her. So she
made her way with confidence among
tho Saturday Sipbf- spprs and. when